Storm Athletic Department Announces 2014-15 Annual Award Winners

Each year, five student-athletes are selected by a vote of the department coaches and administrative staff for the annual department awards.

Track and field’s Destiny Prusky (Newton Falls, Ohio/Newton Falls) was named Jane White Lincoln Female Athlete of the Year. Football’s Anthony Bilal (Painesville, Ohio/Riverside) was named Male Athlete of the Year. Savannah Karako (Fairport Harbor, Ohio/Lake Catholic) was named Female Rookie of the Year while lacrosse’s Lucas Shafer (Hamburg, N.Y./Hamburg) was named Male Rookie of the Year. Teammate Justin Goodwin (New Westminster, B.C./New Westminster Secondary) was named the recipient of the Gloria A. Heaney Award for Academic and Athletic Excellence.

Prusky qualified for her third straight Outdoor Championships in the high jump, finishing in 13th place. At this year's Indoor Championships, Prusky earned Second-Team All-American honors in the high jump, finishing in 12th place. At the D-II Challenge in the winter, Prusky set the school record by clearing 1.73 meters. This marks the second straight year in which Prusky has received this award.

Bilal finished third in the Harlon Hill Trophy voting, which is awarded to the top player in Division-II. Bilal also earned First-Team All-American selections by USA College Football, Daktronics, AP Little All-American, Beyond Sports Network and USA College Football, as well as First-Team All-Region honors by Daktronics and Don Hansen. He was named the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) Offensive Back of the Year, earning a spot on the First-Team. The Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) named Bilal Co-Offensive Player of the Year.

Karako posted a batting average of .368 in her rookie year, earning All-GLIAC honors. She led the Storm with nine doubles and hit two homeruns on the season. At the end of the season, she received the NCAA Statistical Champion Plaque for “Toughest to Strikeout”, going 112 at-bats without striking out.

Shafer was a pivotal piece of the Storm offense, earning an All-American Honorable Mention selection. He led the Storm with 59 points on 39 goals and 20 assists. Shafer scored four or more goals in five games and had seven games of five or more points. In addition to his success on offense, Shafer caused 14 turnovers and collected 33 groundballs. In addition to the AA honor, Shafer was named the ECAC Championship MVP and earned multiple ECAC Player of the Week honors as well as a spot on the All-ECAC First-Team.

Goodwin was named Division-II’s Most Outstanding Defensive Player after helping the Storm achieve the top spot in the national rankings and top-four finish in the country. He earned several postseason awards, including Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) Defensive Player of the Year, USILA First-Team All-American and USILA Scholar All-American. During the 2014 season, Goodwin collected 105 groundballs and caused 53 turnovers. As a biology major, Goodwin earned a 3.79 GPA.